President Donald Trump took to Twitter to mock Jamie Dimon’s supposed presidential hopes, chiding the JPMorgan Chase chief executive after the banking head said Wednesday that he could beat Trump in a presidential election.
Dimon, the longest serving banking executive on Wall Street, is also a man who has repeatedly fielded questions concerning a potential presidential run. That banker said at an event in New York City that while he believed he could beat Trump, he would never make it through the Democratic primary, according to CNBC .
“I think I could beat Trump because I’m as tough as he is, I’m smarter than he is,” Dimon said at his bank’s Park Avenue headquarters, the business network reported. “I would be fine. He could punch me all he wants, it wouldn’t work with me. I’d fight right back.”
Dimon, though, was remorseful about the comment shortly afterwards. As his statement went viral, Dimon apparently wanted to avoid lending credence to rumors that he would actually make a run, CNBC stated.
“I should not have said it,” Dimon added, per CNBC . “I’m not running for president. [This] proves I wouldn’t make a good politician. I get frustrated because I want all sides to come together to help solve big problems.”
Despite taking back the verbal swipe against Trump, the president did not hesitate to throw a rhetorical punch back at Dimon via Twitter on Wednesday.
The problem with banker Jamie Dimon running for President is that he doesn’t have the aptitude or “smarts” & is a poor public speaker & nervous mess – otherwise he is wonderful. I’ve made a lot of bankers, and others, look much smarter than they are with my great economic policy!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 13, 2018
Regardless, Dimon said he did not see his political ambitions lasting beyond the Democratic primary, where he believes that he would face a difficult liberal field.
“I can’t beat the liberal side of the Democratic Party,” Dimon said, per CNBC , adding that the party needs to stop bashing the business community and “get their act together.”
CNN has called Dimon “probably America’s most influential bank CEO,” heading the influential Business Roundtable, which promotes the interests of business in public policy. The news network said that Dimon has commented on Trump’s policies on trade and immigration previously, just after the presidential election of 2016.
Dimon announced back in January that he and the board agreed that he would continue to lead JPMorgan until 2023. The company, at the time, promoted Daniel Pinto and Gordon Smith to co-president and co-chief operating officer respectively, both men seen as possible grooming opportunities, CNN stated.
“Both have proven track records of working successfully across the firm and both truly possess the capabilities, character and intellect that exemplify great leadership,” Dimon said in a statement at the time, per CNN .
